Poxoréu plane crash kills two pilots during test flight

Two pilots died on Friday afternoon after a small aircraft crashed and caught fire at Fazenda Água Funda, a rural property in Poxoréu, Mato Grosso. The victims have been identified as 58-year-old Zelicio Filgueira Tomaz and 22-year-old Rafael Pereira Guedes.

Preliminary reports from the Civil Police suggest the aircraft was performing a test flight following maintenance conducted in Primavera do Leste. The impact caused an immediate explosion and a fire that spread to the surrounding pasture and vegetation. Emergency teams from the Fire Department and Samu arrived at the scene around 5:35 PM to combat the flames and recover the bodies.

The aircraft, potentially a Comp Air 7SL, was completely destroyed by the crash and subsequent fire. The Civil Police of Poxoréu and technical experts from Politec are investigating the site, while the Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Center (Cenipa) has been called to determine the official causes of the accident.